Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

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Equal parts Lois Lane, J. Jonah Jameson and Vicki Vale, Zak! has traveled from coast-to-coast covering small and big town community news in both in print and online for nearly a decade since his graduation from the award-winning Roy H. Park School of Communications at Ithaca College in 2010.

Before settling into the Hudson Valley, Zak! previously spent time in the New York Daily News newsroom and worked for hyperlocal digital news outlets on Long Island. He wrote sports for The Ithacan and The Ithaca Journal before taking his talents to the Pacific Northwest, where he served as the sports editor at the Shoshone News-Press until heading back east to work with Daily Voice.

Zak Failla's Contributions

Upper Marlboro, MD
Obituaries
One Month After Turning 37, Largo Man Mark Davis Was Killed Waiting For The Bus One Month After Turning 37, Largo Man Mark Davis Was Killed Waiting For The Bus One Month After Turning 37, Largo Man Mark Davis Was Killed Waiting For The Bus
One Month After Turning 37, Largo Man Mark Davis Was Killed Waiting For The Bus One month after celebrating his 37th birthday, Mark Davis was gone. The longtime DC-area resident, whose life stretched between Washington and Largo, was struck and killed while waiting at a Metrobus stop on Tuesday, July 14, leaving behind a grieving family determined to make sure he's remembered for the life he lived, not simply the way it ended. Davis was standing at the bus stop at Southern Avenue and Suitland Road in Southeast DC when he was hit by a pickup truck, according to his family. "He was a human being with a story, a personality, and people who loved him," loved ones wrote in…

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by Zak Failla
Aberdeen, MD
Breaking News
Six Ounces Of Crystal Meth, Loaded Gun Uncovered By K9 During Traffic Stop: Police Six Ounces Of Crystal Meth, Loaded Gun Uncovered By K9 During Traffic Stop: Police Six Ounces Of Crystal Meth, Loaded Gun Uncovered By K9 During Traffic Stop: Police
Six Ounces Of Crystal Meth, Loaded Gun Uncovered By K9 During Traffic Stop: Police Crystal meth. A loaded handgun. Thousands in cash. What started as a routine traffic stop in Maryland quickly turned into a major drug bust on Wednesday night, police said. The seizure happened around 7:47 p.m. on  July 22, when an Aberdeen police officer stopped a vehicle for a traffic violation near Route 22 and Old Post Road. During the stop, circumstances led the officer to call in the Harford County Sheriff's Office K-9 Unit.  After the police dog alerted to the vehicle, officers searched it and recovered approximately:  Six ounces of suspected crystal methamphetamin…

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by Zak Failla
Burtonsville, MD
Your Community
'Not ICE': Montgomery Police Push Back After Burtonsville SWAT Raid Sparks Rumors 'Not ICE': Montgomery Police Push Back After Burtonsville SWAT Raid Sparks Rumors 'Not ICE': Montgomery Police Push Back After Burtonsville SWAT Raid Sparks Rumors
'Not ICE': Montgomery Police Push Back After Burtonsville SWAT Raid Sparks Rumors An early morning SWAT operation in Maryland quickly fueled speculation online that federal immigration agents were carrying out an ICE raid. Montgomery County police say that's not what happened. Members of the Montgomery County Police Department's SWAT team executed a search warrant Thursday, July 23, at a home in the 15300 block of Graaf Place in Burtonsville as part of an ongoing criminal investigation. As photos and reports from the scene began circulating on social media, rumors spread claiming the operation was tied to immigration enforcement. By late Thursday morning, the departmen…

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by Zak Failla
Arlington, VA
Breaking News
DEVELOPING: Worker Rescued After Falling From Penthouse Ledge At DC High-Rise (PHOTOS) DEVELOPING: Worker Rescued After Falling From Penthouse Ledge At DC High-Rise (PHOTOS) DEVELOPING: Worker Rescued After Falling From Penthouse Ledge At DC High-Rise (PHOTOS)
Developing: Worker Rescued After Falling From Penthouse Ledge At DC High-Rise (Photos) Firefighters rushed to the 1100 block of 15th Street NW late Thursday morning, July 23, after a maintenance worker fell a short distance from a railing or ledge on the penthouse level of a downtown high-rise, according to DC Fire and EMS. The adult man was conscious and alert when crews reached him. Twitter/@dcfireems Because of the building's location and the height involved, members of Rescue Squad 1 and Tower 3 launched a technical high-angle rescue, securing the worker in a Stokes basket before carefully carrying him down an internal stairwell. Photos from the scene show firefighters…

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by Zak Failla
Silver Spring, MD
Breaking News
Silver Spring Driver Admits To 84 MPH Crash That Killed Woman, 85, Heading Home From Church Silver Spring Driver Admits To 84 MPH Crash That Killed Woman, 85, Heading Home From Church Silver Spring Driver Admits To 84 MPH Crash That Killed Woman, 85, Heading Home From Church
Silver Spring Driver Admits To 84 MPH Crash That Killed Woman, 85, Heading Home From Church She admitted it. A Maryland driver who prosecutors say tore through morning rush-hour traffic at more than double the speed limit before triggering a crash that killed an 85-year-old woman has pleaded guilty. Jesica Argueta, 23, of Silver Spring, pleaded guilty Tuesday in Montgomery County Circuit Court to her role in the August 2025 crash that claimed the life of Josephine Gieske and seriously injured another victim. The deadly crash was reportedly shortly before 7:45 a.m. on Aug. 7, 2025, at the intersection of Randolph Road and Sherwood Forest Drive in Silver Spring. According to prose…

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by Zak Failla
Capitol Heights-District Heights, MD
Breaking News
Maryland Woman Faces Possible Limb Loss After Motorcycle Crash As Recovery Battle Begins Maryland Woman Faces Possible Limb Loss After Motorcycle Crash As Recovery Battle Begins Maryland Woman Faces Possible Limb Loss After Motorcycle Crash As Recovery Battle Begins
Maryland Woman Faces Possible Limb Loss After Motorcycle Crash As Recovery Battle Begins Her toughest ride is just beginning. A Maryland woman remains hospitalized and faces the possibility of losing a limb after a devastating motorcycle crash.  Friends say multiple surgeries still lie ahead before her long road to recovery can truly begin. District Heights resident Nakima Williams remains in the hospital as doctors continue treating the severe injuries she suffered in the crash.  Fellow rider Gerald Glover, who spoke with Williams this week, said she is scheduled to undergo two more surgeries and still faces "a long road ahead." According to friends, Williams is b…

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by Zak Failla
Arlington, VA
Obituaries
Father Dies Four Days After Daughter, 18, Killed On DC-295, Leaving Mom To Plan Two Funerals Father Dies Four Days After Daughter, 18, Killed On DC-295, Leaving Mom To Plan Two Funerals Father Dies Four Days After Daughter, 18, Killed On DC-295, Leaving Mom To Plan Two Funerals
Father Dies Four Days After Daughter, 18, Killed On DC-295, Leaving Mom To Plan Two Funerals One unimaginable loss became two in less than a week. Four days after 18-year-old Camari Primrose was struck and killed on DC-295, her father, Edwin Primrose, suffered a fatal heart attack, leaving a Maryland mother with the heartbreaking task of planning two funerals in the span of a single week. Camari, of Silver Spring, was killed early Monday, July 13, in Southeast Washington, according to the Metropolitan Police Department. According to MPD's preliminary investigation, Camari exited a vehicle stopped in the northbound lanes before entering the southbound lanes of DC-295, where she was…

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by Zak Failla
McLean, VA
Breaking News
Special Ed Teacher Accused Of Inappropriate Contact With Student Arrested In Fairfax: Police Special Ed Teacher Accused Of Inappropriate Contact With Student Arrested In Fairfax: Police Special Ed Teacher Accused Of Inappropriate Contact With Student Arrested In Fairfax: Police
Special Ed Teacher Accused Of Inappropriate Contact With Student Arrested In Fairfax: Police A special education teacher in Northern Maryland was arrested following a monthlong investigation into allegations that he had inappropriate contact with a student. King George resident Eliseo Perez, 35, who works at Cooper Middle School, allegedly had unlawful and inappropriate contact with a student in May 2026. The investigation was launched on June 4, when school administrators at Cooper Middle School were notified of concerns regarding inappropriate behavior involving a teacher. Detectives from the Child Abuse Squad were notified and assumed the investigation. Perez turned himself in …

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by Zak Failla
Linthicum, MD
Breaking News
Linthicum Heights Man Spent $29K+ To Direct Filipino Children's Live Sex Abuse, Feds Say Linthicum Heights Man Spent $29K+ To Direct Filipino Children's Live Sex Abuse, Feds Say Linthicum Heights Man Spent $29K+ To Direct Filipino Children's Live Sex Abuse, Feds Say
Linthicum Heights Man Spent $29K+ To Direct Filipino Children's Live Sex Abuse, Feds Say A Maryland man is facing federal prison time after admitting that he dished out thousands of dollars to watch Filipino children be sexually abused live online, authorities announced. Linthicum Heights resident Philip Andrew Turner, 47, pleaded guilty to coercion and enticement in connection with what prosecutors described as a child sex trafficking operation based out of the Philippines. According to the US Attorney's Office, Turner began communicating with a known Filipino trafficker over Skype between November 2017 and March 2018, using the platform to entice and coerce minors into engagi…

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by Zak Failla
Randallstown, MD
Breaking News
Randallstown Dealer Discussed Cutting Fentanyl With Supplier To Prevent Overdoses, Feds Say Randallstown Dealer Discussed Cutting Fentanyl With Supplier To Prevent Overdoses, Feds Say Randallstown Dealer Discussed Cutting Fentanyl With Supplier To Prevent Overdoses, Feds Say
Randallstown Dealer Discussed Cutting Fentanyl With Supplier To Prevent Overdoses, Feds Say Federal prosecutors say a Maryland fentanyl dealer and his supplier discussed the drug's potency, then mixed in cutting agents to make it less likely to kill the people buying it. That conversation became part of the case against 50-year-old Jacque "Hammer" Brown, of Randallstown, who was sentenced to more than 11 years in federal prison after investigators uncovered a large-scale fentanyl operation inside his Baltimore County home. The investigation began in March 2025 after the DEA received information that Brown was distributing fentanyl throughout the Baltimore area. Agents tracked his…

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by Zak Failla
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